Latex allergy in health-care workers in an English district general hospital

✍ Scribed by Handfield-Jones

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 234 KB
• Volume: 138
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0007-0963
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2133.1998.02073.x

✦ Synopsis

Immediate hypersensitivity to latex protein is a serious and potentially life-threatening problem. This study found that eight of 867 (0.9%) medical and nursing staff in a district general hospital were allergic to latex with resultant hand eczema and/or urticaria. Wheezing occurred when latex became airborne, adsorbed to starch powder. Sensitized individuals are at risk of anaphylaxis when they themselves become patients. Measures to prevent latex sensitization include pre-employment advice regarding hand care and glove use, particularly for atopics, who are at increased risk. Gloves made from synthetic latex must be available for a sensitized individual, both to use at work and when undergoing medical examinations, surgery and dentistry. Increased awareness of the problem by health-care workers is important in order to recognize those at risk.